and no, the toilets do not flush counter-clockwise...

So I made it in one piece, hale and whole. I've been in New Zealand four days now and I have to say everyday day I think to myself, and often out loud, "I live HERE? Wow..." Seriously. It is an amazing thought that goes through my mind when I see a beautiful vista here that says, "hey you, you live here now." I really like New Zealand alot. The people are so very friendly and laid-back. The taxi drivers are kind and extremely helpful. A cab driver in Wellington ran out of my cab to get a baggage cart for me and help me load it at the ferry station there...so very unlike the Chicago cabbie who dropped me and my luggage off in the street at Union Station. LOL. The weather is spectacular, rainy the first couple of days and dreary, but yesterday cleared up and I was able to see the amazing views of Nelson without the obstruction of low-lying clouds.

This is the view from the living room at Laura and Luke's house. yep.

I went to the theatre on Friday to help out with their children's holiday program (it's Easter hols here- two weeks off of school) and met people there who I'll be working with (in theory!) and I also decided I really like the small space the theatre has. It's a small black box theatre with about the smallest stage area I've ever seen...but it'll be a good challenge to be able to work in that space.

Change is good for me and I think this move to NZ was a good choice so far. I'm happy with it and look forward to the challenges life brings me. Yesterday we went to Cable Bay, which is only about 15 minutes away from town. It was lovely there and again, I can't believe I live here.